Season 4 Episode 2 of Ted Lasso, “Curiouser and Curiouser!,” reunites us with old characters and introduces new ones, making us excited for the rest of the season.
Director: MJ Delaney
Writers: Leann Bowen, Dylan Marron, Julia Lindon
Run Time: 47′
Season 4 Episode 2 (“Curiouser and Curiouser!”) Release Date: August 12, 2026
Where to Watch: Stream it on Apple TV
Last week, the Season 4 Premiere of Ted Lasso had me wondering about the future of the series, as the episode’s main purpose was to set the stage for what was to come in the rest of the season. This week, episode 2, titled “Curiouser and Curiouser!”, gives us 47 minutes of television that feel like the Ted Lasso we know and love, reuniting us with many beloved characters and introducing new promising ones.
Episode 2 of Season 4 starts where it all began, in Richmond, London, with Ted getting back to his old routine. Instead of his old apartment, he’s now staying at a place owned by The Crown & Anchor’s owner and bartender, Mae (Annette Badland, of Portraits of Dangerous Women). It’s the same old Richmond, but cereals have gotten smaller, Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein) bakes biscuits, and construction work is taking place down the road. “I guess nothing stays the same,” Ted says to himself, and a familiar “w*nker” arrives to reassure him that some things will never change.
Back at AFC Richmond, Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham) and Leslie (Jeremy Swift) are dealing with some issues of their own, mostly concerning a newly assembled, lengthy ‘Higgins Report’ highlighting that their second division women’s football team might be doomed to fail. Speaking of which, the team’s Assistant Coach, “little ray of sunshine” Alice Chilton (Tanya Reynolds, of Sex Education), has just handed in her resignation, pointing out to Rebecca that she never considered a woman for the position of head coach, and our football club owner is now determined to prove she’s a feminist.
Elsewhere, the one and only Roy Kent is now coach of the men’s division, with a hilariously disheveled, sublimely paranoid Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt) as his assistant. Beard is, to quote Roy, “being very strange,” courtesy of “the Jane thing” but also of his dealing with Ted’s return. Episode 2 treats Ted and Beard’s relationship like a breakup, cleverly framing Roy as the latter’s new boyfriend, and the dynamics that ensue are the best part of the episode. Watching the three characters communicate and be around each other is not just funny and entertaining, but it also brings back the Ted Lasso magic we missed.
It helps that Goldstein is in top form as a Roy who’s grown a great deal but who still remains his blunt, short-tempered, slightly sadistic yet deeply caring self. The former AFC Richmond Captain is part of what makes “Curiouser and Curiouser!” such a compelling episode, and the show also implies his and Keeley‘s (Juno Temple) working relationship potentially evolving in the future, with several satisfying, well-written scenes where Temple and Goldstein get to showcase their chemistry – and charm us with their personalities in the process.
As for Ted, the newly returned coach is getting ready to meet a new team – only, this time, he’s done his research, thanks to a detailed report from Coach Chilton that introduced him to the players before he even got there. Sadly, the assistant coach is about to leave, but Ted has his ways, and he’s on a mission to get her to stay. His other mission is meeting his new team, and it all starts, in Ted Lasso fashion, with a press conference and some locker room changes. Though we don’t get to properly meet all the Season 4 players in this episode, we see enough to be interested in finding out more about the team, and Coach Chilton might be growing on us too.
Episode 2’s title, “Curiouser and Curiouser!,” is a nod to the famous “Alice in Wonderland” line, but hardcore Ted Lasso fans will immediately make the connection with a memorable quote from Season 1: “Be curious, not judgmental.” Though this week’s episode is still setting the stage for what’s to come, there’s still plenty to be curious about, starting with Tanya Reynolds’s Coach Chilton, who might just turn out to be one of the season’s highlights, and a team that we can’t wait to find out more about.
This week’s episode is not revolutionary; while it’s a highly enjoyable, entertaining chapter in the franchise’s new season, it does have some highs and lows. Some storylines are more interesting than others, Rebecca in particular feels underdeveloped, and even the episode’s best moments are no match for the kind of storytelling we used to get in previous seasons. Still, “Curiouser and Curiouser!” has plenty of highlights and is a welcome entry in a fourth season that’s starting to look very promising. It’s the kind of episode that you’ll watch with a smile, and if the rest of the season is like that, I’m very excited for what’s to come. “Welcome to second division women’s football,” indeed.
Season 4 Episode 2 of Ted Lasso is now available to stream on on Apple TV.